Examining the problems of the individuals who have autism spectrum disorder with their siblings and their expactations for the future

The purpose of this study is to examine the problems of the individuals who have a brother with an autism spectrum disorder and their expectations for the future. The population of the study has been consisting of normal development siblings of children with autism who have been receiving special education in private educational institution living in İzmir. The sample of the study have consisting of 107 siblings of children who had been diagnosed with autism. In this study, mixed method that has been including both quantitative and qualitative research techniques has been preferred. In order to collect data, semi-structured interview questions from qualitative research methods had been used to determine the relationships of the siblings with their siblings with special needs, their problem areas, their feelings towards their siblings and their expectations for the future. In order to pick information of child, who has autism, and demographic features of their siblings, "Family Information Form" had been used. Schaeffer Sibling Behaviour Rating Scale and Sibling Problems Questionnaire had been used. SPSS program had been used to analyze the obtained data. According to the findings of the study, involvement, empathy, avoidance and physical aggression behaviors of siblings of children with autism were found to have relationship with sibling problems. It was determined that positive behaviors such as involvement and empathy towards brothers with autism reduce sibling problems while negative behaviors such as physical aggression and avoidance behaviors increased sibling problems. According to demographics, significant behavioral differences were observed in terms of gender and age variables. It was found that girls with siblings had higher levels of kindness, involvement and empathy than boys, and boys had higher behaviors of avoidance and physical aggression. It was also determined that males had more problematic behaviors than females in terms of gender of autistic siblings. Significant differences were found between the siblings of the children between the ages of 8-10 and 17-18. Keywords: Autism Spectrum Disorder, sibling relations, sibling behaviors, sibling problems